AMITA Health Saints Mary and Elizabeth Medical Center in Chicago recently was reaccredited with Disease Specific Certification to be an Advanced Primary Stroke Center, demonstrating the hospital’s expertise and commitment to treating patients experiencing a stroke.
The reaccreditation is awarded based on a rigorous onsite evaluation of the staff’s ability to evaluate, diagnose and treat patients who may be experiencing a stroke. The team at AMITA Health Saints Mary and Elizabeth Medical Center achieved excellence throughout the survey, impressing the surveyor with their performance.
“We are very proud of the excellent stroke care provided by our colleagues at AMITA Health Saints Mary and Elizabeth Medical Center and congratulate them on attaining this prestigious certification for 10 years straight,” said Amy Wilson, MSN, RN, CPHQ, Senior Vice President, Clinical Operations, Ascension. “Their team’s push toward continuous improvement is a wonderful demonstration of Ascension’s commitment to providing the best possible care for those we serve.”
“Receiving this accreditation validates the excellent work we are doing,” said Dana Clark, Chief Nursing Officer. “It’s great for our hospital to be recognized for providing continuously quality care and having the excellent outcomes we demonstrated to the surveyors.”
Stroke is the No. 5 cause of death and a leading cause of adult disability in the United States, according to the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association. On average, someone suffers a stroke every 40 seconds and someone dies of a stroke every four minutes. “It’s that urgency that pushes the team to continue improving,” Dana said.
“Every second counts when someone has a stroke – so we need to make sure all of our processes are aligned,” she said. “The surveyor was very impressed with our numbers and times – and that speaks volumes. We’re extremely proud to be recognized for providing efficient and timely care.”
“The stroke team at AMITA Health Saints Mary and Elizabeth Medical Center has done a great job achieving clinical process reliability for the benefit of our patients,” said Kelly Randall, PhD, LGSW, CPHQ, SSBB, who recently joined Ascension Clinical Operations as Vice President, Patient Safety and Compliance. Kelly is responsible for Ascension’s overall patient safety strategy. “We are very proud that they showed they can deliver such seamless care.”
“This was the 10-year anniversary of our first certification,” said Stephanie Orr, Regional Stroke Coordinator, AMITA Health. “We know it means something to the community when we can say we are accredited and will continue to provide them with a high level of care.
“We maintain the focus of doing the right thing at the right time, and stroke care is so time-sensitive. Staying up to date on the latest clinical practices and maintaining this certification for 10 years is the right thing to do.”
Photo: Members of AMITA Health Saints Mary and Elizabeth Medical Center’s nursing, quality and leadership teams who contributed to the hospital’s reaccreditation efforts.
